PING PONG CAT from Hello Future Films on Vimeo.
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Monday, March 24, 2014
Parenthood has a Nice Guy problem
*Spoiler alert for Parenthood*
So, I just watched the Parenthood episode Jump Ball (Hulu). In it, shy, introverted Drew is basically living the Nice Guy fantasy of two incredible women fighting for his affections. The back story is that his high school sweetheart goes to school across the country, while he attends Cal, where he is close to home and family. While there, a hot girl on his floor repeatedly hooks up with him but indicates she'd like to keep things casual. Which is to say, she has her eyes open about the dangers of trying to find someone to spend the rest of your life with in college, when circumstances can tear two smart, ambitious people apart through no fault of their own.
Drew struggles with this situation a bit but it continues until his old girlfriend shows up and says she doesn't want to go back to school. She moves into his dorm room and refuses to tell her parents she has not gone back. The hot girl shows a little jealousy over this and reminds Drew he doesn't have to be tied down to one person at the age of eighteen. The episode culminates in a moment of decision for our young protagonist. Will he go on the overnight stargazing trip with hot hookup girl? Or will he stay home with girl next door? If you understand the psychology of the Nice Guy (Who Just Wants To Be Loved), you know exactly where this is headed. Drew turns around and walks back to his dorm room, where lays his head on her welcoming bosom and sighs.
It's all very nice until you realize, "Wait a minute? Isn't this the girl who is basically emotionally blackmailing this kid? The one who can't face up to her problems or be honest with her parents about the challenges she is facing? The one who is using Drew as a safe house so she doesn't have to face the world? Why is he choosing her over the woman who knows what she wants and has always been open and honest with him? Why is he choosing the manipulative one?" The answer to this question is of course, Drew is a Nice Guy. Nice Guys hate it when women are open and honest about their intentions. They prefer to deal with women who are needy or controlling, because it insulates them from blame when things go south. Ultimately, their inner emotional immaturity draws them to other people with problems.
What gets me about this episode is that, at least so far, the writing seems to be indicating that Drew made the right choice. That is just screwed up. If I am wrong (and I could be, I am still like 6 episodes behind), then mea culpa. But I don't think so. So often on this show, women are punished for being independent, and this feels like another case. I'm kind of hate watching this, aren't I?
So, I just watched the Parenthood episode Jump Ball (Hulu). In it, shy, introverted Drew is basically living the Nice Guy fantasy of two incredible women fighting for his affections. The back story is that his high school sweetheart goes to school across the country, while he attends Cal, where he is close to home and family. While there, a hot girl on his floor repeatedly hooks up with him but indicates she'd like to keep things casual. Which is to say, she has her eyes open about the dangers of trying to find someone to spend the rest of your life with in college, when circumstances can tear two smart, ambitious people apart through no fault of their own.
Drew struggles with this situation a bit but it continues until his old girlfriend shows up and says she doesn't want to go back to school. She moves into his dorm room and refuses to tell her parents she has not gone back. The hot girl shows a little jealousy over this and reminds Drew he doesn't have to be tied down to one person at the age of eighteen. The episode culminates in a moment of decision for our young protagonist. Will he go on the overnight stargazing trip with hot hookup girl? Or will he stay home with girl next door? If you understand the psychology of the Nice Guy (Who Just Wants To Be Loved), you know exactly where this is headed. Drew turns around and walks back to his dorm room, where lays his head on her welcoming bosom and sighs.
It's all very nice until you realize, "Wait a minute? Isn't this the girl who is basically emotionally blackmailing this kid? The one who can't face up to her problems or be honest with her parents about the challenges she is facing? The one who is using Drew as a safe house so she doesn't have to face the world? Why is he choosing her over the woman who knows what she wants and has always been open and honest with him? Why is he choosing the manipulative one?" The answer to this question is of course, Drew is a Nice Guy. Nice Guys hate it when women are open and honest about their intentions. They prefer to deal with women who are needy or controlling, because it insulates them from blame when things go south. Ultimately, their inner emotional immaturity draws them to other people with problems.
What gets me about this episode is that, at least so far, the writing seems to be indicating that Drew made the right choice. That is just screwed up. If I am wrong (and I could be, I am still like 6 episodes behind), then mea culpa. But I don't think so. So often on this show, women are punished for being independent, and this feels like another case. I'm kind of hate watching this, aren't I?
Dead Formats and Me
This is ridiculous. Blogs are dead. Next week, I'll be starting a Usenet group. That said, I have some things I want to say more publicly than Facebook, and I like writing. Or at least I like having written. Anyhoo. Here we are. I have every intention of writing every day, but for me, that is going to entail the sort of unfocused topic jumping which makes it impossible to build and maintain an audience. Here we are. Share this with your friends and enemies.
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And Instagram
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